Inclusion Insights: Taking Control Of Chocolate's Not-so-small Challenges

This paper explores the challenges chocolate manufacturers typically meet when working with inclusions – and proposes solutions for ensuring consistent, higher-quality results.

- Jorgen Holdgaard

Inclusions are not that Easy

Producing consistently good-quality chocolate is not without its challenges. Viscosity, new forming requirements and a long list of other aspects keep chocolatiers and production managers on their toes – and living in constant fear of producing a large batch that needs to be re-worked.

Now let’s add inclusions to those realities. Take puffy rice crisps, for example. They’re the equivalent of extreme sports for the chocolate manufacturer. Under vibration, and with a very light density, they do their best to avoid the mixture completely, tending to float on top of it. Nuts, on the other hand, are far more dense and dive straight to the bottom. With perhaps just 15 seconds available for the chocolate to fit the mold, the ability to provide a perfect substrate for inclusions to position themselves and be properly enveloped in chocolate is worth its weight in gold.

The aim, therefore, is to transfer the flowing chocolate into a suitable working texture – one that can envelope inclusions and flow freely enough into difficult, obstructed spaces, yet without losing too much viscosity. In short, inclusions can drive you nuts.

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